Local veteran honored

Retired Marine Bill Carr, left, is presented the title of N.C. Military Order of the Purple Heart chaplain emeritus by Medal of Honor recipient and retired Army Col. Joe Marm Friday in downtown Goldsboro.

Some of Goldsboro's most notable veterans converged on the Wayne County Veterans Memorial Friday afternoon to honor a man characterized, by one of them, as a "giant" in the local veterans' community.

Retired Marine Bill Carr, a Vietnam veteran who was knocked out of the war by an enemy bullet, was named the North Carolina Military Order of the Purple Heart's chaplain emeritus -- a title that, like membership in the organization, lasts "for life."

Local Medal of Honor recipient and retired Army Col. Joe Marm presented Carr with a letter documenting his new title and lauded him for, among other things, being one of the men who ensured a chapter of the MOPH existed in Wayne.

"It's an honor for me to present this very special award to a veteran who has done an outstanding job for North Carolina and America," Marm said. "Bill's career goes way back to 1954 when he entered the service as a young Marine.

"Bill is what the Marine Corps and our service men and women are all about."

Carr said he was humbled by his new title -- and, after the ceremony, vowed to use it to help recruit a new crop of MOPH members to the chapter he helped found.

But Friday, he used the platform to do what many say he always seems to when he's the center of attention -- whether it was the day he was inducted into the Order of the Long Leaf Pine or the moment an officer pinned the Purple Heart to his chest.

He talked about everybody but himself.

"I'm surrounded by so many good friends. All of you are doing all kinds of good deeds for the county and the city and I just can't say enough about you," Carr said. "I salute you all."